new puppy biting

ameee

hi, got a lovely new puppy yesterday having wanted one for a long time just having a bit of a problem with him biting.I know its normal and he is only a baby who doesnt know any better but I need to get him trained out of it as he has bitten my three year old twice though she was rolling around with him barking and "playing puppies" so I could see it coming :rolleyes: so im wondering whats the best approach? so far I let a roar at him which may not have helped but I got a fright at seeing him bite her so hard, how do I stop him biting without scaring him?

dirtyghettokid

had the same problem myself. from what i've read, if they start to bite, say "OW!" or "NO!" and give them something that they CAN chew on.
it's a tough one. i've had my girl three months, and she still tries to bite my wrists all the time.

the_syco

The child needs to be taught how to interact with the puppy as well.

dirtyghettokid wrote: »

give them something that they CAN chew on.

Please note: you are rewarding her for biting you. You need to do a different approach, before the puppy associates "biting people" with "treat".

dirtyghettokid

the_syco wrote: »

Please note: you are rewarding her for biting you. You need to do a different approach, before the puppy associates "biting people" with "treat".

everywhere i read on the internet said to give it something to chew on - not a treat. her adult teeth are in now, getting sick of the mouthing.. starting to hurt. i just walk away from her when she tries to do it (she has no interest in chewing rawhide bones or anything)

rorrissey

My pup is 6 months old, and whenever he gets too excited and play bites I muzzle him with my hands and tell him "No bite!" and then I let go when he's calm. He doesn't bite as much anymore because of this, I'm hoping he'll grow out of it completely when he's older.

And you should try to keep the puppy and your daughter calm around eachother, they shouldn't play rough games such as chase and "playing puppies" :P ! Puppies always get too excited in these situations! He'll get calmer with age.

Friel

You'll have to get him used to the word "no" or "stop" or whatever you use. Whenever he starts to understand what that means, and it's being said to him when he tries to do certain things he'll associate them with stop and eventually learn not to do it. He is a pup so don't expect it to happen over night, his teeth could be sore too. Do get him something to chew on, but when he bites you don't give it to him as a substitute straight away. He'll think it's a treat.

andreac

kevohmsford wrote: »

Just roll up a piece of newspaper and tap the dog on the nose with it and say no when they bit. Dogs hate newspaper for some reason.

Do not do this!! God i really do wonder about some people and how they still treat animals.:mad:

andreac

kevohmsford wrote: »

What exactly is wrong with this ? it is not cruel and works. If the person does nothing and the dog bits some child it will have to be put down.

Of course its cruel, you are hitting the dog with a lump of newspaper on the most sensitive part of its body so of course its cruel.

Plus, you dont be carrying around newspaper all the time, so by the time you go off to get your paper and hit the dog with it, the dog will have absolutely no clue as to why you are hitting it, go figure...:rolleyes:

ameee

thanks ill pick him up some chew toys tomoro in case he is teething, I know my daughter wasnt helping she loves animals and she was just as overexcited as the puppy our cat has endless patience with her but then he can jump up out of reach and the dog cant.Ill work on getting he to play in a calm manner with him tomoro no more rolling aound on the floor!

Noxin

kevohmsford wrote: »

What exactly is wrong with this ?

How would you like it if someone rolled up a newspaper and smacked you on the face with it any time you thought you were just having a bit of fun?

kevohmsford

I did not say smash or hit I said tap. I do not go around hitting animals. Anyway I was just giving a bit of advice.

wexie

kevohmsford wrote: »

Just roll up a piece of newspaper and tap the dog on the nose with it and say no when they bit. Dogs hate newspaper for some reason.

if you went around 'tapping' them on the nose with a lump of cheddar they'd start hating cheddar.......starting to see a pattern?

OP, puppies will always mouth but you do need to teach them not to. We used to make a really high pitched exaggerated 'ouch' noise as puppies would make themselves which worked for our dog at the time. It's also something that's easy to teach a 3yr old to do.

The other thing I've known people to do is a quick squirt of water with a plant spray or something....we never bothered trying this on our newfy though as for them that'd be a reward

PhotogTom

What's worked for me. Squeak or squeal very sharply - think of the sound a puppy makes when something hurts/surprises them and make that sound. My other top tip, if the puppy is "mouthing" you but not biting yet, put your thumb under their tongue, other fingers under their jaw and press down until the puppy makes that sound and immediately stop.
You've got to get biting under control quick. Not that the dog is mean or vicious but is just playing in an inappropriate way.

planetX

you got the pup yesterday so I assume it's just a baby? You're going to have to expect biting for some time to come, and guard your 3 year old - no matter what you do right now, the pup is going to bite for some time, so keep them both safe.
I don't agree that giving a toy is rewarding the bite - with a baby puppy it's all about distraction. Squealing 'ouch' didn't work with my dog, it made him excited and he bit more. What did work for him was giving him something else to bite on, lots of toys around so there was always one close by when he started biting. It's just playfulness.

ameee

yes he is only a baby so I dont want to scare him when I try to stop him hopefully he will learn quick enough

Cherry Blossom

You don't want to stop a puppy from mouthing completely, it's much better they learn the limit of what hurts and if you want no mouthing at all this still has to be learned first. The access the child has to the pup needs to be very restricted until the pup figures this out. This is one area where socialisation with other dogs really helps as they speak the same language and can communicate between them what hurts and what doesn't. In the meantime if you have a crate when the pup nips too hard put him in the crate for a few minutes so he learns that playing too rough equals no playtime at all. No matter how you go about it, it's going to be pretty much impossible for you to gage when he has overstepped the mark with your child (as it's not your hand) so you really need to just be vigilant with limiting what type of interaction you allow while the pup is still figuring this out. Squeeky toy attached to a dog lead (ie. no physical contact but the child can still play with the pup) seemed to keep everyone happy in my house.

Whispered

PhotogTom wrote: »

put your thumb under their tongue, other fingers under their jaw and press down until the puppy makes that sound and immediately stop.

I could be misreading this, but are you suggesting the OP squeeze down on the inside of the puppies mouth until it squeals?

I'm not sure how you'd deal with it with a child, I don't have kids, but we dealt with mouthing by saying "ah" sharply when too much pressure was used and turning away and ending the game immediately.

I totally agree with AJ, mouthing shouldn't be totally stopped in my opinion, you can teach your dog to control how much pressure he uses. I think it's important because it helps the dog to develop bite inhibition - if he's ever in a situation where he feels the need to defend himself using his mouth this lesson would be invaluable. With a child in the mix I'm not sure if you'd be happy to allow mouthing to continue. Our rule is that our boys can mouth our hands/arms but nobody else's, maybe you can do that? Teach your little girl how to yelp "like a puppy" and tell her to do it everytime she feels teeth and you can allow him a bit more leeway.

Enjoy having a puppy in the house! I was just looking at my older dog today thinking how it feels like a lifetime ago he was a little thing chewing the legs of our table.

ameee

we are enjoying it he is a little ball of fun just need to get the aggression in check I dont think he was socialised at all before we got him so he is playing interacting with us like other dogs but Im trying to stop that. Ive been doing the sharp noise and stop playing when he bites and he is getting better already still jumping up at the kids faces and that when they sit down to pet him so I have them standing up to pet him until he learns because Im afraid he will hurt them.He is also growls a lot and barks when we take something off him he shouldnt have so Ive been giving him toys and taking them away over and over again same with his food to get him out of the habit dont know if thats going to help time will tell

wexie

sounds like you're taking the right approach. Once these things start working a bit get the kids to feed him regularly. It's important he knows they are above him in 'the pack' as well.

And if my experience is anything to go by then the kids will love having a job, we need to keep track of who's turn it is otherwise there's drama.

ameee

thanks that sounds like a good idea ill try that he does seem to be getting that Im in charge but not the kids so that might do the trick its all a bit new to me Ive only had cats before